Dispenser cover and methods of making and using same

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure is directed to a cover for preventing use of a dispenser. The cover includes a body having an open end, a closed end, and a sidewall extending between the open end and the closed end. The sidewall has an outer peripheral surface and an inner peripheral surface which encompasses an inner space for receiving a dispenser.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS/INCORPORATION BY REFERENCESTATEMENT

The present patent application claims priority to U.S. ProvisionalPatent Application U.S. Ser. No. 62/909,010, filed on Oct. 1, 2019, theentire contents of which is hereby expressly incorporated herein byreference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates generally to dispensers, and moreparticularly, not by way of limitation, to a cover for preventing theaccidental operation of the dispenser and damage to the materialcontained in the dispenser.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Screw-type dispensers are generally used to provide a material, such aslip balm, to an individual. One common problem is the accidental and/orunintentional operation of the screw-type dispenser in an individual'spants pocket or purse which causes the material to move out thedispensing end of the dispenser, thus mashing lip balm material up intoan end cap positioned over the dispensing end which wastes the lip balmmaterial and/or causes a mess.

To this end, a need exists for containing the material and preventingaccidental operation of the dispenser. It is to such a cover that thepresent disclosure is directed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING(S)

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of a cover constructed inaccordance with the present disclosure

FIG. 2 is a side view of the cover of FIG. 1 positioned about adispenser.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the cover of FIG. 1 and a conventionaldispenser.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Before explaining at least one embodiment of the inventive conceptdisclosed herein in detail, it is to be understood that the inventiveconcept is not limited in its application to the details ofconstruction, experiments, exemplary data, and/or the arrangement of thecomponents set forth in the following description, or illustrated in thedrawings. The presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept iscapable of other embodiments or of being practiced or carried out invarious ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology andterminology employed herein is for purpose of description only andshould not be regarded as limiting in any way.

In the following detailed description of embodiments of the inventiveconcept, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide amore thorough understanding of the inventive concept. However, it willbe apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that the inventiveconcept within the disclosure may be practiced without these specificdetails. In other instances, well-known features have not been describedin detail to avoid unnecessarily complicating the instant disclosure.

Further, unless expressly stated to the contrary, “or” refers to aninclusive or and not to an exclusive or. For example, a condition A or Bis satisfied by any one of the following: A is true (or present) and Bis false (or not present), A is false (or not present) and B is true (orpresent), and both A and B are true (or present).

In addition, use of the “a” or “an” are employed to describe elementsand components of the embodiments herein. This is done merely forconvenience and to give a general sense of the inventive concept. Thisdescription should be read to include one or at least one and thesingular also includes the plural unless it is obvious that it is meantotherwise.

Finally, as used herein any reference to “one embodiment” or “anembodiment” means that a particular element, feature, structure, orcharacteristic described in connection with the embodiment is includedin at least one embodiment. The appearances of the phrase “in oneembodiment” in various places in the specification are not necessarilyall referring to the same embodiment.

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGS. 1-3, showntherein is one embodiment of a cover 10 constructed in accordance withthe inventive concepts disclosed herein, the cover 10 being shownpositioned about at least a portion of a conventional screw-typedispenser 12 used to apply lip balm to the lips of an individual.Although the dispenser 12 is shown being used to provide lip balm, itshould be understood that the screw-type dispenser may be utilized fordispensing various materials, such as, by way of example, personal careproducts, cosmetics, glue, and/or the like.

The dispenser 12 includes a barrel 14 for receiving a material, an openend 16 for dispensing the material, an end cap 18 positioned about theopen end 16, and a screw-type end 20 having a wheel 22 which can berotated to extend or retract the material for use by the individual. Thebarrel 14 has a first end 24 (non-dispensing end), a second end 26(dispensing end) and an outer surface 28. The end cap 18 is attached toand/or positioned about the second end 26 of the barrel 14. Theconventional dispenser is a common tool used for dispensing material andis well known to one of ordinary skill in the art. Thus, no furtherdiscussion is necessary regarding the dispenser 12 or its operation.

It is contemplated, in one embodiment, that the cover 10 is constructedfrom a single component, however, it should be understood by one ofordinary skill in the art that the cover 10 may be constructed from amultiple pieces of materials. The cover 10 is preferably made ofelastomeric materials, such as neoprene, rubber, latex or other suchelastomeric polymer which enables the cover 10 to return to its originalshape once removed from the dispenser 12. However, the materials arestrong enough to allow for use of the cover 10, as disclosed herein. Thecover 10 may be constructed from a variety of durable and resilientmaterials, such as for example, polymeric materials, plastics,thermoplastics, any elastomers, and composite materials which arecapable of providing the desired strength and durability for the cover10. Further, it should be understood that the cover 10 may beconstructed from materials that may be water-resistant and/or waterproofso that the cover 10 may be easily cleaned.

The cover 10 is shown as substantially conical in shape. However, itshould be understood that the cover 10 or portions thereof may be anyshape, such as circular, oval, square, rectangular, triangular,polygonal, quadrilateral, ellipsoidal and the like, for example. Thecover 10 may be elastic, rigid, semi-rigid, flexible, semi-flexible,foldable, collapsible, and the like. The cover 10 may be provided in avariety of colors and designs for identification or novelty.Additionally, the cover 10 may also include and/or be constructed froman insulate material to prevent melting of the dispensed material. Itshould be understood that the size and configuration of the cover 10,and portions thereof, may vary widely dependent upon the size of thedispenser 12. It should be understood by one of ordinary skill in theart that the cover 10, although discussed herein as being used with adispenser 12, may be utilized and configured in a variety of shapes andcapacities to contain and/or prevent leakage for other containers,tools, and the like.

The cover 10 has a body 30 which includes an open first end 32, a closedsecond end 34, and a sidewall 36 extending between the open end 32 andthe closed end 34. The closed end 34 is shown herein as being rounded inshape. It will be appreciated, however, that the closed end 34 of thecover 10 may be configured in and comprise variations of any shapes ormay comprise significantly altered shapes such as square or rectangular,as long as the cover 10 functions in accordance with the presentinvention in the manner described herein. The sidewall 36 has an outerperipheral surface 38 and an inner peripheral surface 40 whichencompasses an inner space 42 for being positioned at least about thescrew-type end 20 of the dispenser 12 to prevent accidental operation ofthe dispenser 12 and movement of the the wheel 22.

In use, when storing or not using the dispenser 12, the open end 32 ofthe cover 10 is stretched and positioned about the first end 24 of thedispenser 12 to engage the outer surface 28 of the barrel 14 of thedispenser 12. A relatively airtight seal is created between the outersurface 28 of the barrel 14 and the inner peripheral surface 40 of thecover 10 to prevent movement of the wheel 22 of the dispenser 12.

In another embodiment, the cover 10 may be constructed in a rolledconfiguration and then placed in an unrolled configuration when used toseal the cover 10 on the dispenser 12. When rolled, the inner peripheralsurface 40 of the cover 10 is exposed. The exposed inner peripheralsurface 40 contacts the outer surface 28 of the barrel 14 of thedispenser 12 and unrolls the cover 10 such that the sidewall 36 of thecover 10 overlaps the outer surface 28 of the barrel 14 and the wheel 22of the dispenser 12.

In one embodiment, the cover 10 may have an elastomeric first portion,proximate the open end of the cover 10, constructed of material havingelastomeric properties which allows the elastomeric first portion toexpand when the first end of the dispenser 12 is disposed within thecover 10 when the elastomeric first portion of the cover 10 is stretchedabout the first end of the dispenser 12. The elastomeric first portionmay be comprised of neoprene, lycra, rubber, elasticized fabrics, or anyother such materials which have elastic properties, as described herein.The elastomeric first portion of the cover 10 will grip the adjacentportion of the dispenser 12 and will cause the elastomeric first portionof the cover to closely conform to the shape of the dispenser 12 andwill secure the cover 10 to the dispenser 12 leaving a substantiallyairtight seal about the screw-type end 20, as explained above. The cover10 may have a second portion constructed from a non-elastomericmaterial, proximate the closed end of the cover 10. The elastomericportion may be a separate component connected to the open end of thecover 10. Alternatively, the elastomeric portion may be of unitaryconstruction with the non-elastomeric of the cover 10, or an extensiontherein. The cover 10 may be constructed from a material which isimpregnated with an elastic material in one portion to form theelastomeric portion.

Attached hereto are various other views illustrating one embodiment ofthe present invention and the operation of one embodiment of the presentinvention. It should be understood that changes may be made in theoperation and the setup of such embodiment. The attached materials areincorporated herein by reference.

From the above description, it is clear that the inventive concept(s)disclosed herein is well adapted to carry out the objects and to attainthe advantages mentioned herein as well as those inherent in theinventive concept disclosed herein. While exemplary embodiments of theinventive concept disclosed herein have been described for purposes ofthis disclosure, it will be understood that numerous changes may be madewhich will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art andwhich are accomplished without departing from the scope of the inventiveconcept disclosed herein and defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A cover for preventing use of a dispenser,comprising: a body having an open end, a closed end, and a sidewallextending between the open end and the closed end, the sidewall havingan outer peripheral surface and an inner peripheral surface whichencompasses an inner space for receiving a dispenser of lip balm.
 2. Thecover of claim 1 wherein the body is constructed from an elastomericmaterial.
 3. The cover of claim 1 wherein the body is constructed from apolymeric material.
 4. The cover of claim 1 wherein the body issubstantially conical.
 5. The cover of claim 1 wherein the closed end isrounded.
 6. The cover of claim 1 wherein the closed end is squared. 7.The cover of claim 1 wherein the closed end is rectangular.
 8. The coverof claim 1 wherein the open end is sized and dimensioned to receive aportion of a barrel of the dispenser of lip balm.
 9. The cover of claim1 wherein the sidewall is constructed of an elastomeric material.
 10. Amethod for preventing use of a dispenser, comprising: providing a bodyhaving an open end, a closed end, and a sidewall extending between theopen end and the closed end, the sidewall having an outer peripheralsurface and an inner peripheral surface which encompasses an inner spacefor receiving a dispenser of lip balm; positioning the open end of thebody about a non-dispensing end of a dispenser such that the innerperipheral surface of the body is in contact with an outer surface ofthe dispenser to form a relative airtight seal between thenon-dispensing end of the dispenser and the cover.
 11. The method ofclaim 10 wherein the body is constructed from an elastomeric material.12. The method of claim 10 wherein the body is constructed from apolymeric material.
 13. The method of claim 10 wherein the body issubstantially conical.
 14. The method of claim 10 wherein the closed endis rounded.
 15. The method of claim 10 wherein the closed end issquared.
 16. The method of claim 10 wherein the closed end isrectangular.
 17. The method of claim 10 wherein the open end is sizedand dimensioned to receive a portion of a barrel of the dispenser of lipbalm.
 18. The method of claim 10 wherein the sidewall is constructed ofan elastomeric material.
 19. The method of claim 10 further comprisingthe step of: positioning the open end of the body about a dispensing endof a dispenser such that the inner peripheral surface of the body is incontact with an outer surface of the dispenser to form a relativeairtight seal between the dispensing end of the dispenser and the cover.20. The method of claim 10 further comprising the step of: removing thebody from an outer surface of the dispenser.